Report: Linking with universities and research institutions: promoting farmer-led participatory innovation development

Prolinnova (2023) Linking with universities and research institutions in promotingfarmer-led participatory innovation development in ecologically orientedagriculture and natural resource management, 28 p

Prolinnova is currently facilitating a series of webinars aimed at providing an opportunity for its Community of Practice to share experiences in linking with university and research actors in promoting the Participatory Innovation Development (PID) approach. 

19 April 2023. The first of this year's webinars was held on 19 April 2023 and attended by 52 participants. The webinar introduced the concepts of local innovation and PID and shared case studies on how five Prolinnova Country Platforms (CPs) - in Burkina Faso, Kenya, Nepal, South Africa and the United Kingdom - implemented PID activities together with university and research actors with a view to institutionalising this approach.

The cases covered the following topics:

• An overview of the PID concept and an innovator’s perspective
• Experience in collaboration between a research institution and Prolinnova–Burkina Faso in the framework of the Proli-GEAFaSa (Promoting local innovation in water management by family farmers in the Sahel) project
• The use of PID as an entry point to engaged scholarship
• Status and lessons learnt in Nepal in integrating local innovation and PID into academia
• Powering up farmer-led research through linking with research and innovation organisations in the UK and the European Union (EU).
• For details on the inputs and discussions during this first webinar and for information about the subsequent two webinars, please visit the Prolinnova website

Webinar 2 in August 2023 focused on building capacities within universities and research institutes to create conducive conditions for integrating PID. 

Webinar 3 will focus on “Networking and resource mobilisation to support the process of integrating PID concepts and practices into universities and research institutions” will take place on Wednesday 15 November at 11:00 CET.